Washington Church Celebrates Easter with a Flowering Cross

On Easter morning, members of Tacoma (Washington) Christian Reformed Community Church celebrated the cross as an instrument springing with new life.

Abby places her flower on the cross during the Easter morning worship service.

Nearly 300 people placed fresh-cut flowers on the cross during the morning worship service. Clay Warren, one of the church’s pastors, said, “It will help us see how something so cruel can become something so filled with life, and as each person adds their flower to the cross they are recognizing that it was because of that cross and Christ’s resurrection that we have new life.”

Church members were invited to bring fresh-cut flowers from their gardens or from a florist. Extra flowers were available for guests and visitors. While the congregation sang worship songs celebrating Christ’s resurrection, church members of every age came forward and placed their flowers on the cross.

Typically the children lay their flowers in the lower section followed by adults in the upper sections, but some of the children were lifted by a parent in order to place their flower at the top of the cross.

The service was concluded with a liturgical worship dance to the song “Thank you for the cross.”

This is the third year Tacoma CRC has celebrated Easter with a flowering cross. Church members hope this will be a cherished tradition for years to come.